Improvement in car-couplings



v H. c. GLASGOW. Car Cu'plng;

No. m67. A I Patented Mar. 1, 1564;

UNITED STAT-Es PATENT. p OFFICE.

HENRY C. GLASGOW, OF CHICAGO, ILLI'NOIS.

viMPaovEMt-:NTIN oAa-oouPLtNos.

Speciiicat-ion'formng part of Letters Patent No. 41,767, dated March l, 1964; antedated February 17, 13li4.

' To @ZZ whoa-2) it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY C..GLASGOW, of Chicago, in theconnty of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful AImprovements in Car-Couplings; and I do hereby declare that the following` is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and the letters and figures marked thereon, which vform part of this specification.

In the said drawings, which are hereunto annexed, Figure 1 represents a plan or top view of my invention. Fig. 2 represents a side view thereof in section at the line v.7c in 'Fig. l. same; and Fig. 4 shows a plan view of the Fig. 3 represents an end view of the abutting end of the coupling, the top being removed.

Similar letters o1" reference in theseveral figures aforesaid denote corresponding parts ot' my invention.

- The nature of my invention consists in so constructing a device for-coul'iling together the cars composing a train that there shall be but little slack in the connections; that ears ot unequal height may be coupled together in such a manner that the draft shall be horizontal; that the cars may be run together pre paratory to being coupled without the necesti y ot' any persons standing between or near the cars, and when the cars have been run together and are at'rest the person whose duty it may be can go in between the cars and connect them without moving the train, and that the coupling may bc accomplished automatically by simply running the cars together.

"To enable those skilled in the art to linderstand how to construct and use my invention, l will proceed to describe the same with particularity, reference being made. to the said drawings annexed. v

-A A B b inthe said drawings represent the abutting' end of the coupling, and is provided with two or more recesses, as shown clearly-in Fig. 3, whose depth from front to rear is such as to allow the coupling-link C to slide back within said recesses about one half the length of said link, leaving the other half thereof projecting out, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2v. The parts of the aforesaid abutment marked A A should be of cast-iron; the parts marked B of wood; the parts seen in Fig. 3, denoting the end of the grain, which also proiect out a short distance beyond the other parts, so that when the cars come togethe 1 the striking parts of v the coupling shall be ot'wood,a11d the parts marked b of wrought or cast iron, though I prefer them of wroughtiron. These parts are firmly bolted together by the bolts marked h in the drawings. Through the center ot the said abutment there is made a longitudinal slot extending through said abutment from top to bottoni,- which is markedta, in which the coupling-pin C moves. The said pin C passes through a movable slide marked g, which slides back and forth in a groove on the top of the abutment, as shown in the drawings. At the extreme end of the said pin` bclow said sliding plate g, there are protections which prevent the pin from being moved out of said'plate, and the said plate is prevented from sliling out of the groove in which it moves by a suitable stop in the grooves at the front end; or the grooves themselves need not extend fully to the-end otlthc coupling. The purpose of this device is to prevent the pin from being lostand to sustain it in the posi' tion shown in F ig. 2 preparatory to coupling the cars together automatically, as hereinafter described. y

e represents a wire attached to the pin C, and fa wire support for said wirec, the uses of which will be hereinafter explained.

I I represent two strong rods\.vhich pass through thc projections a a upon the Said abutment, where theyare confined by a screw or nut, thence passing through the plank E, so as to readily slide or inove therein, and then passing or bending around the plank F, down behind said plank, and going back at the bottom of the coupling throng h said plank E, and being fastened to the abutment, as before described.

' H H represent two strong rods, which are bent as shown, passing around the transonn beam of the car, (marked J in the drawings.) then extending forward and passing loosely through the front or end of the car, (marked G,) and the plank F is fastened at each end to the plank E, as shown.v There is coiled around the said rods H il, between the planks E and F, a strong spiral spring, (marked s in the drawings.)

Fig. 4 shows a plan view of one ofthe blocks lhshon ing small castiron blocks iu the rear nt' thc ret-ess, against which the end ofthe link restswhen pressed back, containing also the recess b', in which the pin can lie w'ithout being bound by the pressure of the link, soas to be. withdrawn readily when desired.

When the partitions b are made of wrought iron, thc blocks l in theupperand lower recess may be cast upon the parts A and A', and the. blot-lt ll' in the middle recess or recesses can bebolted o-r otherwise attached to the block B; but it' the partitions b are ot" castiron then the interior blocks, ll', may be castV upon the parts l).

rlhe operation of my invention isas follows:

lVhen the cars are run together, the abutting ends oil the blocks B strike together, the link C at thc same.i time entering into that recess in the coupling of the adjacent car, which is ot' the proper height,'the edges of the parti tions l; being beveled down so as to insure the entering ot' thc linl\','as aforesaid. If the pin c be in thc recess b' at the .time of running the cars together, it isl then raised up, moved t'orward to the properposition, and then dropped through the. link (j, thus coupling the cars tirmly together. ()n the said pin c there is a 1 rojection which prevents the pin from droppingl down through the Coupling, as said pro" iection abraivsrests upon thelink (l,thewcightI of the piti retaining the couplinglink in ahorizontal position; but it' the pin c be arranged as shown in Fig. 2 when the'cars are run to gether, then by the. contact ot' the cars the said pin is caused to fall or drop through the said link, thus coupling the cars automatic a`ly, for, as thc cars are run together the shock co'mpresbes the springs s s, and thus.

the pin c approaches nearerto the end ofthe car G,'and the upper end ot' the bent rod or wire epresses against (l and forces the upper end ot' the pin forward, thus throwing the said piti into an upright position, when the lower end slips` from its support. and drops through the link, as aforesaid. The said springs s s also serre to relieve the sudden shock occasioned by the contact ot' the cars with each other when being run together, and also when the train is started, for when the cars are run together the pressure forcesthe plank E, sliding upon the rods H and I, toward thebunter D; but the springs s s, by their elasticity, gradually retard the motion of the said plank E, so that it comes against the said bunter very gently, occasionin g no violent shock whatever, and when the cars are started the draft brings theplank F and bunter D toward the plank E, the springs s s operating in the same mannerand with the same result.

By the arrangement of the said springs s s and the sliding rods H H the cars mayv be coupled without anyr considerablel slack between them, as the springs at one side of the coupling may be compressed, while those on the other side are not, so as to provide for any ,curves in the road, while at the same time the faces of the abutmcnts mayv rest closely against each other.

The said springs and sliding rods are also capable of a vertical as well as lateral adjustment, so as to provide for the up-anddown or jumping motion ofthe cars without the necessityfot' havinga sack motionbetwcen the cars.

In the bunter I) there'is a removable block, d, which may be of such thickness as to suit the more or less elastic force" ofthe springs s s. When the springs ss have greatest elastic force, the thickness' of said removable block should be greatest, and when they are weakened by use. the block'd maybe made smaller, so as to allow the springs to check the violence of the shock before the plank Ecomes in contact with said block.

Having .now described my improvement in car-couplings, I will specify what I claim as new therein and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The construction, combination, and arrangement ofthe castings A A,blocks B B',- .a-nd partitions b with the sliding planks E F, rods H I, and springs s's, as and for the purposes herein lshown .and described.

2. In combination with the foregoing, the pin c, with the stop or rest c', and bent rod e,

`and the slide g, moving in a longitudinal slot,

a, and the recess for the pin b', arranged as and for the purposes specified.

. HENRY C., GLASGOW.

Witnessesz W. E. MAUS, J. L. COBURN. 

